Thermopile elements.



No. 775,188. PATENTED NOV. 15, 1904 J. A. LYONS & B. C. BROADWBLL.

THERMOPILE ELEMENTS.

APPLICATION FILED JULY 6.190s. RENEWED JULY 6,1904.

HO MODEL.

' of thermopiles.

UNlTED :SIPECIFIGATION formingpazt of LettrsPatent Application filed July 6, 1903. Renewed July 5, a

To all whores it may concern:

Be it known that we, JOHN A. Lyons EDWARD (J. Bnonnwnmmitizens of the United States, residing at Chicago, in the county oi Cook and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Thermopile Elements, of which the following is'a specification.

Our invention consists in the suhstitu tion of bars or pieces of solid metallic salts or true inorganic chemical compounds for the metals or alloys heretofore used in the construction In practice. we use suitably electrically conductive and diificultly-fu lols bars each consisting of a mixture of the inetallic phosphids, arsenids, borids, silicids, sulfids, selenids, or tellurids, a sufiicient amount of the non metallic element having been melted and combined with the metal or metals,- the resulting salts of which are used to com.- pletely convert the metal or metals into true inorganic chemical compounds or mixtures of these compounds and destroy the well-known physical properties of the metals used.

While we are aware that galena has been used with metallic iron and copper snllid with German-silver alloy, the chief object of our invention is to obviate the use of metals or alloys, and thereby the annoyance due to unequal expansion and contraction.

in carrying out our invention in one embodiment thereof alternate bars or plates of a mixture of iron sulfid with lead sullid having these salts in about equal proportions are used in conjunction with bars or plates of copper phosphid to which an excess of phosphorous has been added during its formation to insure complete conversion of copper to copper phosphid and to which varying proportions of copper sulfid or tin tellurid may be added,. these hars or plates being arranged in any wellnown manner to receive energy from a source of heat. i

For a full description of the invention and the merits thereof and also to acquire a linowledge of the details of construction and of the means for efiecting the result reference is to he had to the following description and drawings hereto attached.

While the essential and characteristic feaof the invention are c i igure 1 shows a plan view the t with the'upper collar away, 2 shows a VSllllo l with central. cy Corresponding and like l awings, in whichl g pile to in the following description in looth views of the drawings y erence characters. Referring to the drawings, represents r l llIlQ cylinder, which may be iorme-l or-n iron or other suitable metallic pipe section, Cot" pahle oi radiating heat to the thes'inopile elements which are placed about it. These elements, consisting oi the metallic compound hars heretofore described, are assembled about the central cylinder in a number of separate banks or piles Z5, insulated from other by vertical strips of asbestos c which may be connected up in series or parallel with each otheig as may be desired. In the drawings six banks of elements are used; but we do not limit ourselves to this so ciiic number, i As shown in Fig. 2, OZ (Z represent the positive elements and e e the negative elements, each being so shaped and formed that a horizontal layer of ashestosff may placed between then-s, leaving, howewer a portion as g g, for purpose of contact between the two. At both the top and hot-ton: of the apparatus is placed a collar or annulus it, of heavy glass, porcelain, or other suitable nonconducting material, which is of sufiicient width to overlap the cylinder at with its inner edgeand the outer angles of polygons formed by the banks of thermopilc elements with its outer edge. These collars tightly together lay means of coiled springs t' of suiiicient strength and suitable length to insure good contact betw en the con 'SlgllOU-S positive and negative of the thermopile when parts ambled as shown. Thes-esprings p lab around the collars on both inside of the hanks of elezne; position act in a similar man for tightening druonheads,

are drawn.

central cylinder is heated red-hot by any suitable and convenient means and heat is radiated therefrom to the inside edges of the bars.

\Vhile these bars give excellent results, many other combinations of bars of two or more different chemical compounds have been tried and found useful, and therefore having discovered the possibility of doing away with the use of metals or alloys thereof in thermopile construction forthe source of an electroinotive force we do not limit ourselves to any given chemical salts or inorganic chemical compounds, since we differ from all invented heretofore by the disuse of metals or their alloys.

Having described our invention, What We claim is" 1. A thermopile having bars or plates of chemicallydissimilar compositions, possessifig electrical conductivity, each composition consisting of a mixture of chemically-dissimilar inorganic compounds, substantially as described.

2. A thermopile having negative and positive elements, one composed of a znixtu re of iron sulfid and lead sulfid and the other of a mixture of a copper phosphid and another dissimilar metallic salt, substantially as described.

33. In a thermopile, the combination of bars or pieces each composed of mixtures of any two or more chemically-dissimilar salts, said bars of any configuration, possessing electrical conductivity of the first order, and assembled. in any suitable manner to allow of maintaining a difference of temperature at their ends in order to establish and maintain an electromotive force.

In testimony whereof We have signed our names to this specification in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

JOHN A. LYONS. EDWARD C. BROADVV'ELL. Witnesses:

W. H. DOOLITTLE, H. P. DOOLITTLE. 

